Fortune Brands sues to block share transfer

NEW YORK, May 12 (Reuters) - Fortune Brands Inc (FO.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), maker of Jim Beam bourbon, sued its joint-venture partner, Sweden's Vin & Sprit AB [VSG.UL], maker of Absolut Vodka, in U.S. court on Monday to stop preferred shares in Beam Global spirits business from being transferred to the Kingdom of Sweden.

Fortune sued for an injunction in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

According to agreements signed in 2001, V&S owns 10 percent of preferred Beam stock, the lawsuit said.

As part of those agreements, Fortune is allowed to buy back that 10 percent share at fair market value, but the two companies have been unable to agree on a price, the lawsuit said.

V&S, which is owned by Sweden, intends to transfer its stake in Beam Global to the Kingdom of Sweden following the $8.9 billion (5.63 billion euro) sale of its Absolut brand to France's Pernod Ricard (PERP.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which was announced in March, according to court documents.

Fortune said in the lawsuit that it would soon begin arbitration with V&S to set a fair price, but it wants to block the transfer of the shares before then.

A V&S spokeswoman had no comment on the matter.

Fortune shares were trading up 62 cents at $69.16 on the New York Stock Exchange on Monday afternoon. (Reporting by Leslie Gevirtz; Editing by Toni Reinhold)